This artist proves recycled bike parts make the best pets

Nirit Levav's career started typically enough. She graduated from the Parsons School of Design in New York in the 1990s and then returned to her native Israel, where she used the tools she had learned in America to make dresses and gowns. After a decade of this, however, she wanted a new challenge, and turned to art, making jewelry, sculpture and ceramics. Fast forward to the present, and Levav is turning out these cool metal canines, made from recycled bike parts.

"Bully" (Photo: Nirit Levav)Spurred on by her love of dogs, she got the idea for the sculptures after a trip to a Tel Aviv bike shop."My initial desire was to sculpture with found materials, then I realized that I needed quite a lot of it, and there are sometimes huge costs involved, so I started looking for materials that people throw away, things that are considered junk for them and treasure for me," she told From The Grapevine.

On her website each sculpture is given a name and the inspiration for its creation is explained. For example, Levav says she was attracted to the cavalier breed for its droopy ears and cute facial expressions, so she created Max, below.

"Max" (Photo: Nirit Levav)

Lord Maximus was inspired by an old English Bulldog owned by a friend of the artist.

"Lord Maximus" (Photo: Nirit Levav)

And this lazy guy, Billy, a Siberian Husky mix, is named after Levav's beloved childhood canine companion.

"Billy" (Photo: Nirit Levav)

The love of dogs is universal, giving Levav's sculptures substantial crossover appeal. From art lovers to dog lovers, the response to her work has been overwhelmingly positive. "From the first dog, I saw the enthusiasm of my close family, and from then till now I see the reaction of the people that see them, it doesn’t matter if they are young or old, man, woman or child, people are excited and moved by the sculptures and it makes me happy," she said.

And the best part? No pooper-scoopers required.

"Tuzy" (Photo: Nirit Levav)

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Zach Pontz
is a writer and photographer for From The Grapevine. In his spare time he likes to wander random cities.